[7] In 2002, when Reed was 14 years old, she moved out of her mother's house and began living on her own, mainly in apartments in the Los Angeles area.

[8] After Thirteen's success, Reed returned to Alexander Hamilton High School in Los Angeles, but dropped out again after a year.

[7] Catherine Hardwicke, an ex-girlfriend of her father's and friend of her mother's,[9] invited her to work on a script with her when Reed said she was interested in acting.

[7] The film, also starring Evan Rachel Wood, was released in 2003 to positive reviews, gaining Reed some recognition in Hollywood as both a screenwriter and an actress.

Reed has repeatedly been cast as sexually advanced, precocious teenagers, including her character in Lords of Dogtown (2005), also directed by Hardwicke.

[7] On February 12, 2008, it was announced that Reed would portray Rosalie Hale in the film adaption of Twilight, the first book of a popular four-novel series.

[16] In July 2010, Reed joined the cast of the lady assassin action-drama Catch .44, alongside Bruce Willis, Forest Whitaker and Malin Akerman.

[17] In November 2010, it was announced that Reed would star with Hayden Panettiere in the film Downers Grove, a movie adaptation of Michael Hornburg's novel.

[19] In December 2011, it was announced that Reed joined the cast of Pawn, an indie crime thriller directed by David A. Armstrong.

The film also stars Forest Whitaker, Ray Liotta, Common, Michael Chiklis, Sean Faris, Stephen Lang, Marton Csokas and Jessica Szohr.

[20] In July 2013, Reed joined the cast of the independent sports comedy Balls Out, alongside Jake Lacy, Kate McKinnon, Beck Bennett and Jay Pharoah.

Reed recorded a song, "Now That I've Found You", with her then-husband Paul McDonald, which debuted on Ryan Seacrest's radio show on November 15, 2011.

Other well-known figures in the video include Kat Dennings, Drake Bell, Drew Seeley, Amy Paffrath, and Alex Beh.

[33] In March 2014, Reed and McDonald announced that they had separated after living apart for the previous six months due to "work obligations".

[43] Reed is close friends with her Twilight co-star Jackson Rathbone[44][45] and Spy Kids actress Alexa Vega, who was her matron of honor at her first wedding.

She volunteers at animal shelters in her free time and she designed a limited edition collar and leash for Gilt to benefit ASPCA.